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The Modern Bestiary

On sale

15th September 2022

Price: £14.99

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Selected: Paperback / ISBN-13: 9781035402168
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From the familiar to the improbable, the gross to the endearing, The Modern Bestiary is a compendium of curious creatures. It includes both animals that have made headlines and those you’ve probably never heard of, such as skin-eating caecilians, harp sponges, or zombie worms – also known as bone-eating snot flowers.

Arranged by elements (Earth, Water, Air), The Modern Bestiary contains well-known species told from new, unexpected angles (rats that drive cars; fish that communicate by passing wind), as well as stranger and lesser-known creatures, including carnivorous mice that howl at the moon, cross-dressing cuttlefish, and antechinuses – small marsupials that literally mate themselves to death. Finally, there are the ‘aliens on Earth’ – the incredible, the surreal, the magical – such as tardigrades, tongue-eating lice and immortal jellyfish, creatures so astonishing that they make unicorns look rather commonplace.
Written by a zoologist with a flair for storytelling, this is a fascinating celebration of the animal kingdom.

Reviews

Mark Carwardine, author/presenter of Last Chance to See
Everyone who loves wildlife - especially fantastically weird and cringingly gross wildlife - should read this masterful book.
Michael Brooke, author of Far from Land
Even after half a century - and counting - as a professional zoologist, I encountered new and intriguing facts on every page, all conveyed in an easy, friendly style. If ever there was a book that highlighted the bewildering wonders of the natural world, and the need for their conservation, this is it.
Tom Moorhouse, author of Elegy for a River
If you love animals, especially ones with unsavoury habits, this book is for you. Entries are crafted with affection, cast-iron scholarship and an unyielding dedication to exposing as much hilarious weirdness as the animal kingdom can offer. And that, it appears, is rather a lot. This is a book to adore.
George McGavin, entomologist, author and TV presenter
This modern bestiary is a magnificent miscellany that will amuse and amaze. From butterflies that make crocodiles cry and penis-fencing slugs to fish that live inside sea cucumbers' bottoms - the natural world is stranger than you could ever imagine.
Amy Dickman, director of Oxford University’s Wildlife Conservation Research Unit
The Modern Bestiary provides a fascinating, accessible and humorous insight into the wonders of the natural world. Packed with incredible facts and jaw-dropping insights into wildlife ecology, anatomy and behaviour, it is a genuine delight.
Yussef Rafik, zoologist and wildlife TV presenter
Just when you thought the natural world couldn't get any more bizarre, you turn the page and learn about a small marsupial that mates itself to death. There's plenty inside this beautifully written book to make you laugh, squirm and - perhaps most importantly - appreciate how lucky we are to not have to live inside an anus.
Observer
An illuminating compendium of some weird and wonderful creatures.